SCHOOL IS ALMOST OUT!

So, now that the school year is coming to a close (hallelujah), it’s time to ask yourself what you are going to do with all your crap when you go home for the summer. Not only do you have all the stuff you came to school with, but extra things that have accumulated over the course of the year, and quite frankly, it’s going to be a tight squeeze to get everything back home. So what are your options?

Pack the car:

Pros: If you live close and have enough room, taking it all back isn’t that big of a deal. It’s nice having all your stuff with you, and you don’t have to burden anyone with keeping it for you or pay to store it. Especially if you are just living in a dorm, bringing all your stuff back shouldn’t be too strenuous.

Cons: If you live far away from school, bringing it all back can be really annoying, especially the big things like printers that you won’t really be using over the summer. Making everything fit into the car, especially when you have added to your pile, can be really stressful and make you want to pull your hair out.

If you are living off campus and have furniture, things get even trickier. You definitely don’t want to have to rent a U-Haul every time (your wallet won’t like that).

Rent a storage unit:

Pros: Renting a storage unit makes it easy for you to leave your things in a safe place, and make the moving back in process a lot easier, since all of your stuff will already be close to campus.

You won’t have to stress over whether or not you are forgetting essential items, because they never had a chance to get lost around the house.

This is especially great if you have bigger furniture items/apartment essentials. Rent a storage unit with your roomies to cut the cost.

Cons: While a small storage unit doesn’t cost all too much, you still have to pay all summer, and this isn’t just once since universities go on for four years. You still have to lug everything to the storage place, which may take a couple trips especially if you have furniture. Make sure you have a big car or an attachment to help you get everything over there!

Leave stuff with friends:

Pros: Free storage! Do you have a friend that lives close to campus? Why not send a few of your things to live in their garage for the summer? This works out if you guys are roommates anyway, since you’ll be able to send some of your shared items along with them.

Cons: They probably don’t have all the room in the world, so you won’t be able to give them that many things to babysit for the summer. It’s also a little awk, since they’ll feel bad for saying no, but probably don’t want your stuff taking up their garage. If you do this, just make sure to be courteous and not give them too much of your crap!

If you leave it with someone else, chances are it might not come back in as good of condition as when you last saw it. What if their dog or their little sibling gets into your things? Giving your things to a friend is a bit of a wild card option … so make sure you know them well enough and that they won’t hate you for giving them a few boxes.

Rent your furniture:

Pros: Renting your furniture, for instance, means you don’t have to worry about storage! You’ll be able to take all of your essentials back home in your car and not even have to worry about moving the furniture since they come pick it up for you.

Cons: If you live far away, you’ll still have to worry about moving the rest of your stuff, but at least the big furniture will be off the worry list.

Hire a pick-up and delivery service:

Pros: No moving stuff on your part! Collegeboxes.com will send you a starter pack with five boxes and assorted packing supplies, and then will pick up all the boxes, bikes, TVs, etc. on a day of your choosing and will store the stuff for you. When school is starting up again, they will deliver everything back to your dorm/apartment.

Cons: You know what they say, nothing good comes for free. It costs to send you the kit, pick everything up, and of course, charges for extra big items. It’s a great timesaver, but make sure you think it over before calling it up.

Hopefully one of these options caught your eye. As with everything, it’s good to think things over and see which option would best fit your needs. Happy moving!